XHAFERRI, Bilal


Albania, 1976

Small country,

Small time,

Small rations.

Great darkness,

Great fear,

Great misfortune.

Swooping down the roads of the nation,

An owl in the moonlight,

A Gazi-69 jeep

Screeches and howls.


Bust of a Slain Cham Boy

I will appear before you on a misty night,

A looming silhouette of affliction and scorn.

The wind and the stars will tell you nothing of me,

Nor will the bronze glow of my silhouette.

Only my wounds will bear witness,

Only my death will declaim.

Translation:Robert Elsie